Sex drive or libido change from time to time due to various factors, and it’s normal. However, if your sexual urges interfere with your daily activities, it can be a bit distracting. Everyone has their peculiar sexual desires, meaning what seems to be a higher sexual urge may be normal to someone else. That being the case, there is nothing like a “normal” sex drive, if I may say.
Lots of people are curious about the normalcy of their sexual desires. In this article, we look deeper into the causes of high sex urges and how to control and reduce it. But first thing first,
Understanding Sexual Urges – What Is Sex Drive?
Sex drive, also known as libido, refers to someone’s urge for sexual activities, which arises from a biological need to reproduce – It is a normal feeling that most people experience, whether to reproduce or for enjoyment.
Levels of sex drive may range from lack of desire to engage in sexual activities to engaging in the same quite often.
Sexual Urges – When is a High Sex Drive a Problem?
High sex desires is not a problem unless it occupies most of your thoughts. For instance, you might want to figure out how to decrease your sex desires if:
- It interferes with your daily activities such as work, sleep, or health
- It causes mental disturbances
- You can’t get enough no matter how much sex you have
- Affects your relationships
- Causes you to engage in risky sexual activities
If you have a high sex drive that is sorted with good sex, you shouldn’t worry, but rather you should enjoy it!
However, a lack of sexual control may also be hard for those around you. You should find out how your partner or mates think about your pursuit of sex. This will help you understand where you stand as far as sex drive is concerned since you may be in denial about your sexual urges.
What Causes High Sexual Urges?
A high sex drive is normal for young people undergoing hormonal surges. In older people, high sex drive can be due to other underlying issues.
Medical
Medical issues that can lead to a higher sex drive may be brain injuries, hormonal imbalance, mania, and overactive thyroid. If you have an unexplained sex drive, it’s advisable to seek professional assistance before it gets out of hand.
Age and Hormones
Hormonal changes can have a great impact on one’s sex drive.
In younger people, hormonal changes caused by puberty can arouse sexual feelings for the first time. Hormone changes continue to affect individual’s libido throughout their entire life. Research shows that there are possibilities that higher testosterone in men can cause a higher sex drive.
Physical Fitness
According to some research, physically fit people are more likely to have a higher libido and enjoy intense arousal and a better orgasm.
Mental Health
Stress can also determine how much you desire sex activities.
Although some do not feel like having sex in times of stress, others use sexual activities as relievers from whatever they are going through.
Use of Substance
Alcohol consumption decreases inhibitions, leading to a high short-term sex drive. Unfortunately, it can also cause low sexual desire, performance, and satisfaction.
The use of other substances such as cocaine may increase your sex drive but has a fair share of risks, such as engaging in “risky” sex activities in men who have sex with men and teens.
Relationships
Having good sexual activities with either a partner or through masturbation may lead to a high sex drive. Intimacy between partners has shown to have much effect on male sex drive.
Also, if a person does not get sexually satisfied, be it a lack of sex or unsatisfying sexual activities, their sex drive might increase significantly.
How Can You Lower Your Sexual Urges?
If you feel that you have a higher sex drive that is interfering with your daily life, you can try the following:
Talk About It
If you are not happy about your sex drive, talking about it can help offload the burden off your shoulders. Establish what you want from your general life and work on it. This will help you have more control and not become a victim of your sexual urges.
Channel the Energy
Channel the sexual energy somewhere else. Do some yoga, cook some yummy food, have a long-distance walk, or enroll in a dance club. There are lots of activities you can engage in so that you can relieve yourself from sexual thoughts.
Work Through Your Relationship
In most cases, individuals with high sex drive beg their partners for sex, which can kill the feelings they have for their partners. Partners with different libidos are at a higher risk of breaking up because as one is not satisfied, the other thinks it’s too much.
You should try and work together or seek specialist help to develop a plan that will be favorable to both of you and avoid challenges in your sexual life.
Take Something to Lower Your Sexual Urges
If your sex drive is posing a threat to your general life, you should try taking something to decrease it. The following substances may help in reducing the sexual urge:
- Antidepressants – Antidepressants such as SSRIs are believed to dull libido. Antipsychotics also have the same effect. Although they are not designed to reduce libido, some doctors prescribe them for patients with high libido.
- Anaphrodisiacs – In the same way some aphrodisiacs like chocolate can increase libido, anaphrodisiacs are believed to dull sex drive. Some ingredients such as soy, licorice, and lettuce can help in the quest to dull your libido.
- Change Your Medication – If your medication is resulting in a higher libido, you should talk to your doctor so that they can prescribe a different dosage that has no libido interactions.
As earlier said, libido is individualistic. A higher libido can be a normal libido for someone else. But, if you feel like it’s getting out of hand, you should work on lowering it before it ruins your relationships and general life at large.
